WANTED: new home for this poor bag of bones

Sally Burton

Meet Bruno – the down-on-his-luck pooch who was so thin when found tramping the streets that rescuers could span his ENTIRE waist with one hand.

The pooch – a Staffy-Greyhound cross – arrived at Kilnhurst’s Netherlands Dog Rescue with bones protruding in every direction, and passing pure blood.

Picked up from the streets by a dog warden, then taken to the dog pound, his days were numbered – until Netherlands rescuer Jeanette Hollywood spotted him crouched in a corner.

Fellow volunteer Lynne Hopkinson said: “Bruno is young but was in an emaciated, depressed state when he came here... you could span his waist with your hand”.

Among his ailments were gastro enteritis and vitamin B deficiency. But the desperately ill dog has been transformed – thanks to medication paid for by Netherlands, and dedication from kennel volunteers over several weeks.

“He’s healthy, his tail is wagging instead of hanging and the defeated look has gone from his eyes”, said Lynne.

“He’s enjoying his walks and is a totally loving dog who is great with other dogs and will make a wonderful pet.”

Lynne and her co-workers’ initial task was to keep Bruno alive and build up his appetite, which they did by feeding him tiny pieces of cooked chicken,

She added: “It’s really important for the dogs to get out and be socialised.

“We always need help with walking and would love anyone who can spare an hour or two to get in touch.

“We also constantly need more cash, so we can save more dogs and nurse others back to health.

“We really want to take as many dogs in as we can, and our new charity shop at Mexborough will hopefully help us do that.”